Review #29: 'True Grit' (2010)

It is curious as to why the Coen brothers, two of the greatest directors in cinema history, have taken so long to tackle a western. Their style and feel is ideally suited to the grit and the mystery of the West, most evident in No Country For Old Men (2007), Blood Simple (1984) and even The Big Lebowski (1998). How I rejoiced when I heard that not only were they to apply their trade to the western, but were to film a re-adaptation of Charles Portis' 1968 novel of the same name. Of course, it has already been filmed back in 1969 in the not-bad John Wayne version, but the original film always lacked that toughness, and the most important aspect of the film, the character of Mattie Ross, was messed up in the form of the highly annoying and 22-year old Kim Darby. The Coen's new adaptation sticks close to the source novel.

Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) is a 14 year old girl whose father has just been murdered and robbed by the notorious Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin). Lacking faith in the law to bring her father's murderer to justice, she seeks out a lone lawman who has the 'true grit' to tackle such a job, and finds it in the form of trigger-happy U.S. Marshal Ruben 'Rooster' Cogburn (Jeff Bridges). Cogburn is a drunkard who always shoots first, asks questions later, but Mattie sees in him the ability to see her father avenged. After reluctantly agreeing, Cogburn sets out with Texas Ranger LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), who has something of a financial gain with the capture of Chaney, and the two are eventually joined by the determined Mattie.

This is all that someone who has seen the 1969 original will be familiar with, as the 2010 version is in some ways very similar to it. However, the Coen's have their fingerprints all over this, and features some trademark quirky humour and some magnificent cinematography. In my opinion, this is one of their best since Miller's Crossing (1990), which I consider their greatest film. Their are some fine moments, such as a strange meeting with a man clothed in bearskin (complete with bear head) who tries to sell Cogburn and Mattie the corpse that they cut down not long before, and a shooting contest between LaBouef and a bladdered Cogburn.

The biggest problem with the original, as I mentioned before, is the character of Mattie Ross and the actress who played her. She was frustrating and bratty, and the focus of the film seemed to linger on John Wayne's Cogburn. This is Mattie's story and the Coen's wisely make sure that she dominates the film. In Steinfeld, they have found an actress who will surely go on to great things. She is absolutely stunning in the lead, brimming with confidence, intelligence and Southern sass. She manages to hold her own with two Oscar winners, and if anything, blows them out of the water. It's simply one of the finest child performances in many, many a year. Not to say the support is slacking. Bridges, as well as Steinfeld, has received an Oscar nomination for his efforts, and makes for a much better Cogburn than Wayne. John Wayne famously received his only Oscar win for the original film, but it seems now looking back that it was more of a token gesture for a body of work than anything. Wayne had that lived-in look, but Bridges has the acting chops. Matt Damon seems to have been forgotten amongst the two main leads, but his performance is also great, bringing a welcome humour and slight sexual tension to the film.

A trademark for the Coen's is the cinematography, here again working with their lifetime companion Roger Deakins. Never has the West been captured with such astounding beauty and terrifying menace. The final third of the film, in which Mattie encounters Chaney and his gang, led by 'Lucky' Ned Pepper (Barry Pepper, no relation), eventually leads to a night-time dash through the night. The night is shot with a crisp and starry mystery and magic - it is simply beautiful. It is also a nodding homage to Charles Laughton's 1955 masterpiece The Night Of The Hunter. I hope that this cleans up at the Oscars, even though I know it won't.


Directed by: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper
Country: USA

Rating: *****

Tom Gillespie